


And Then There's Steve

by mlyn



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-07
Updated: 2011-08-07
Packaged: 2017-10-26 08:18:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/280808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mlyn/pseuds/mlyn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rachel clues Danny in. Follows 1x23.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And Then There's Steve

Danny drummed his fingers against his thigh, reached for the glass of ice water and took a sip, wiped the condensation from the sweating glass onto his slacks, and went back to tapping. Rachel had been talking nonstop for about three minutes and he still didn't know what her point was.

He watched her mouth moving. Dewy, soft, petal-pink lips. God, he missed those lips. Feeling the wet brush of them against his cheek when she'd hugged him goodbye before driving off with Grace—it had sent a bolt straight to his groin. He hadn't gotten hard from a cheek buss like that since fourth grade.

"We know how good things can be between us," Rachel said, reaching her hands out across the table. He automatically gave her his hands, squeezing her slender fingers lightly between his. "But we're just getting confused by nostalgia."

"Rache." Danny leaned forward and smiled conspiratorially, tilting his head down. "You've been talking my ear off for fifteen minutes, here. What are you _saying?_ "

"It's just chemistry, Danny." The smile faded off her face, and Danny felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. She squeezed his fingers as if trying to push reassurance onto him. "It's the survival response. I'm happy you're alive, you're happy you're alive—but I don't want you to be in danger. I don't want to see you in hospital. If we get back together—"

 _If,_ Danny heard echoed.

"—Won't it be just the same as it always was? Has anything changed?"

Danny pulled his hands back and gripped the edge of the table, as if getting ready to push it away. "What do you mean? Of course things have changed. I realized everything I did wrong when we broke up. We just—" He waved one hand between them. "Sucked at communication. Am I right?"

"Yes, but—oh, _Danny._ " Rachel looked away jerkily, and Danny felt his stomach sink as Rachel's eyes glistened. "I love you too," she said, lip trembling, staring out at the beach. "And that's why I don't want us to be miserable again.

"Besides," she added, brushing her finger across her lower lashes and glancing back at him. "There's Steve."

"Steve?" Danny repeated dumbly. He was still stuck on Rachel talking about being _miserable._ "What the hell does Steve have to do with this?"

Rachel seemed to do a double-take. Her mouth dropped open a little space, and a word stopped in her throat. She looked like she'd been clotheslined Then: "O–Oh. Oh, Danny."

" _What?_ " He realized his tone had risen, and inhaled to calm himself.

"He's in love with you. He's head over heels. Have you honestly never seen it?"

"What?" he repeated dumbly. "Steve? No he's not." He crossed his arms. "No."

Rachel pressed her lips together. "I…We shouldn't be talking about this. I think we both could use some space and think about what happened today."

"Steve is not in love with me." That was fucking ridiculous.

"Danny—" Rachel slung her purse over her shoulder, then put her palm on the table between them, brokering a peace treaty. "I'm sorry. I said too much."

Steve hugging him right before Sang Min busted in. Steve asking if Danny was going to tell him about Rachel. Steve coming into the hospital after visiting hours and finding Rachel in Danny's arms, the look on his face—happy, but masking something.

He'd been okay with it, with Rachel. Right?

"I'll see you soon," Rachel said, already out of her seat and pulling her sunglasses out of her bag. "I'm sorry."

Steve running to Danny first when Danny couldn't breathe. Steve right beside him in the ambulance and the gurney when they'd reached the hospital. Steve right there when Danny had woken up.

Danny's phone rang. It was the "Rocky" theme–the one he'd programmed for Steve. He answered it numbly, on automatic.

"Hey. You still talking with Rachel? I was thinking about grilling some steaks. I can defrost another one if you want to bring her over."

Steve forcing politeness. He was nervous. He didn't want Rachel to come over but felt like he had to offer. Trying to be the better person, even when he saw his opportunity slipping away.

"Are you in love with me?" Danny said into the phone.

"Uh."

Danny waited.

"What'd you say?" Steve said.

"Steve. Jesus christ. Rachel thinks you're in love with me."

"Ohhh. Uh. Shit."

Steve _speechless_. Holy shit. That meant it was true.

" _Fuck,_ man." Danny doubled over and pushed the heel of his hand into one eye. "What the fuck."

"Danny, I— I—"

"You what?" Danny waved his hand as if Steve were there to see him gesture questioningly. "You want me to come over and _eat your steak?_ "

"No, no no, you don't have to— I mean, don't do anything you— don't want to," Steve finished lamely. "Shit. Um, maybe we should just wait to see each other on Monday."

"Fuck _that._ " Danny held the phone with his shoulder and pulled out his wallet to leave some cash for the drinks. "I am coming over there and we are airing this shit right now."

"Um. Okay."

"Good." Danny stood, his chair scraping loudly across the concrete.

"You…" He still couldn't picture this stammering, hesitant person as Steve McGarrett. But the voice was the same, if not the inflection. Steve continued, "…We could still have steaks."

"I'm going to take your steak and—" Danny realized at the last minute how a sentence like that could be construed. He yanked the phone away from his ear and stabbed at the "end call" button.

**Author's Note:**

> o_contrary wrote a follow-up fic that can be found [here](http://hawaii5-0slash.livejournal.com/722628.html).


End file.
